Fight Motorcycle Theft
MAG asks the Government to review vehicle theft sentencing guidelines, and to police motorcycle theft effectively.
Theft of motorcycles is a subset of all forms of vehicle theft. MAG research shows that riders are vastly and disproportionately impacted by vehicle theft. Of all reported stolen vehicles in 2021, around a quarter were motorcycles despite motorcycles comprising only 3% of registered vehicles: https://wiki.mag-uk.org/images/f/f4/Motorcycle_Theft_in_Perspective.pdf
Motorcyclists can face loss of their primary transport, emotional trauma and in some cases physical harm from armed thieves. Additionally, the impacts of this theft are felt not just by the primary victim of the crime. The entire riding community is hit by escalating insurance costs, and wider society faces the very real impact from anti-social use of motorcycles and related road casualties. In 2023 five of nineteen motorcyclist fatalities were linked to stolen motorcycles. In July 2023 a seven-year-old girl was killed in Walsall, having been struck by a stolen motorcycle.
Government must show leadership and a will to tackle this issue. There are many elements to a robust response. Policing is an obvious starting point, but many more stakeholders must be co-ordinated in a joined-up approach. This can be achieved only if led by a government that acknowledges the issue and commits to tackling it.
Solutions include better built-in security measures in motorcycles, plentiful fit-for-purpose secure parking provision, prioritisation of a more robust police response leading to increased disruption of offending and conviction of offenders, allied to a thorough review of the social response to motorcycling and the structure and strength of sentencing. No single solution will solve the problem, and a coordinated response must be applied.
MAG campaigns for local authorities to deliver secure parking facilities and pushed the issue in the elections for Police and Crime Commissioners. We provided platforms for PCCs and police forces to engage with riders up and down the country. MAG works with the Motorcycle Crime Reduction Group and directly with police forces at a local level, but the overall response remains patchy at best.
We need the Government to lead an effective response bringing together all stakeholders in a shared plan. This requires the government to Move on Motorcycling.
MAG continues to get motorcycling issues on the political agenda. All riders can get involved in helping to make that happen. Visit the ACT NOW page to see what you can do today to help us make the future of motorcycling better.
Fight Motorcycle Theft- Campaign Progress
Bikers doing it for themselves
In light of a Government that doesn’t care it is worrying to see a low level of belief from the industry when it comes to combatting bike theft. The recent news stories of declining levels of theft triggered by an MCIA press release have done nothing to persuade a political class of a need to act. Since I sat on the front row of the National Vehicle Crime Conference back in 2022 and was told by the then Minister for Policing that something would be done “if it gets any worse” I can confidently say that nothing has been done.
Meetings with many Police and Crime Commissioners has shown me that any rare local drops in numbers have generally happened without any intervention from the authorities. At national level there has been no new approach adopted, nor increased priority given.
So, sending out overly optimistic messages that motorcycle theft is declining is clearly not going to work in our favour.
I will be the first to celebrate declining numbers, but I certainly will not do that until I can confidently prove that:
- this is the truth and
- that there is some tangible evidence that a decline has resulted from some actual activity by the authorities.
I had the choice in November of attending the Motorcycle Crime Reduction Group meeting to talk about how nothing works or going to the IPC conference to speak about the need for secure parking. Both events were on the same day, one in Birmingham, the other in Manchester. I chose to take positive action rather than revisit the reasons why nothing will work.
Sadly, I feel we need to concentrate our efforts on what we can do for ourselves rather than waiting for the experts to help us. Steve Mallett and friends are making waves with Kent Police, Leeds and Bradford MAG are holding purse holders to account for not spending agreed funds for secure rails in motorcycle bays. These may seem small scale efforts, but if we all do a little, we can achieve a lot. That certainly seems to be our best hope at present.
Take a look at the motorcycle parking in your nearest town or city. Is it secure? If it could be better, it will only change if you make some noise and ask for it to change. If local riders are not using security devices launch a local campaign to educate riders in your area. We are on our own – we need to help each other – the cavalry are not coming.
Colin Brown, MAG Director of Campaigns and Political Engagement
The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) can see potential for a big drop in motorcycle theft in the coming four years. MAG has secured a cohort of Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) candidates willing to make the Fight Motorcycle Theft Pledge.
Gold, silver, and bronze ratings have been applied to all candidates who are talking about motorcycle theft, and how they propose to tackle the issue. Those who have not engaged at all have no rating. To find out if your PCC has pledged view the full list here: https://wiki.mag-uk.org/images/7/7b/2024_PCC_Candidates.pdf
Fight Motorcycle Theft Meetings
MAG are hosting a series of meetings across the UK in an attempt to combat motorcycle theft. These hustings style meetings bring together local police, local Politicians and local councils to give the public their chance to make suggestions about what can be implemented to tackle the problem. MAG has already delivered 6 successful public meetings aimed at raising the profile of the fight against motorcycle theft. Gillingham in Kent, Birmingham, Hertfordshire, Manchester, Hull and Leeds have seen meetings earlier this year with riders given the chance to hold the authorities to account. The previous meetings have seen tangible outcomes, and the hope is that the next meetings will be equally effective.
Kent- 15/03/23
Hertfordshire-14/06/23
Hull- 21/10/23
London- 26/02/24
Cardiff-TBC
Birmingham-15/04/23
Manchester-21/09/23
Leeds-11/11/23
Nottingham- TBC
Edinburgh-TBC
If you would like to be informed of event dates and locations when they are announced, or have suggestions of new areas to be covered please email central-office@mag-uk.org
If you have never been a MAG member, have let your membership lapse, or are thinking you need to save some money by not renewing this year, we would love you to join, re-join or stay with us. If, like us, you are passionate about motorcycling, want to see motorcycling continue in the future, and want to preserve all that you love about it, we hope it will be an easy choice to make. MAG’s strength is in numbers. The riding community can demonstrate strength when it unites. If you want to say you played your part to defend motorcycling, please… join MAG today